Share your thoughts — They mean something

This started off in my head as an idea to share internally — a few pointers for a team starting out on blogging, or considering other ways on how to work out in the open. As such, it is in no way intended as a “This is how we do it…” guide. I am simply putting it up on Medium to signpost the team to somewhere they can share their own thoughts.

Who

Who are you writing for? You and who else? Why would anyone want to read what you have to say?
Ignore that voice in your head. You have a powerful message to share, on the great work you are doing. Just try to understand who/what your audience is. Write for you, but to them.

Length

Geek out or freak out. Will they want a thousand words on business processes or will they stop reading before the first paragraph fi…

Think one side of A4. It doesn’t all have to be words. Go longer if the subject can support it — or break it up if you can. 300 words today, the same tomorrow or next week.

Who will gain?

You, and/or the people around you? If it is a promotional activity, who benefits most from what you are sharing. Think of it as a job interview — your words, yes — but if everything is “We”, how will the reader know what you have done? ‘We’ is for corporate; ‘I’ is for you.

Style

The rain in Spain falls mainly on the plain, but if you don’t live in Spain and it’s sunny today — don’t try to use a voice that isn’t yours. Authentic is often overused, but it is important. Be the you, you want to be in the words — spoken and written.

Theme

Where does today’s piece fit in? Do you only ever write about work? Do you also write about restaurants, family days out — the dark mood that drapes over you in a hotel room at 3am? Will your reader understand the different sides of you — or will they even care?

Think about what you share and where. Use different tools or platforms for the different yous — or don’t. Be your whole self, if that’s what you want to share.

Images

Use them. Unless they’re not yours. Then think of the impact that might come from using someone else’s material. How would you like it if they used your words without permission?Me, writing this

Make them relevant. Weave them in to the story as you would the next sentence that follows this one.

Relevance

Write today on what you did today. Don’t wait a week or a month — you might be working on something far more important by then.

Don’t fight it

If it’s not you, stop. Don’t bother carrying on. Blogs and #weeknotes need to be fed and watered with inspiration and ideas. Find other ways to make yourself heard. Use social media, run a YouTube channel, speak at events — provide the inspiration for other people’s blogs. Make sure they credit you.

Just

Do something that promotes you — the promotion of “we” will happen without you realising.